caught in a trap (you'll go down in flames)
by AlwaysPadfoot
Summary: Sirius Black was beginning to wonder whether taking Herbology as a N.E.W.T had been a good choice.


**AN:** Prompts will be displayed at the bottom to avoid them potentially giving away things.

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 **caught in a trap (you'll go down in flames)**

 **AlwaysPadfoot**

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Sirius Black was beginning to wonder whether taking Herbology as a N.E.W.T had been a good choice.

Greenhouse Four was home to some of the most dangerous species Hogwarts owned. It was where Sirius and Alice had thought there lesson was and now the two of them were trapped by Devils Snare. Both doors were blocked by a curtain of vines, the greenhouse was dark and all of that had happened within the space of thirty seconds.

Sirius swore, fumbling for his wand when suddenly Alice cried out somewhere to his left. He whirled around, wand raised, casting Lumos so he could see. Devils Snare had wrapped its vines around Alice's leg and it was tugging her away from him back towards the main mass of the plant.

"Don't just stand there, Sirius!"

He pointed Lumos directly at the plant, but it didn't seem to give a shit.

"Why isn't it working?!"

"It's a fully matured Devil's Snare; that silly little light is going to do fuck all," Alice yelled.

Her fingers were wrapped the table leg, knuckles turning white as Devil's Snare tried to pull were backwards.

"I feel like there was a dick joke there somewhere," Sirius muttered.

"This is not the time you arsehole."

Sirius had to admit: he was panicking. All he could think of was the rhyme that every kid knew — Devil's Snare, Devil's Snare it's deadly fun, but will sulk in the sun — and apparently Lumos was not going to work. What else was there? Alice cried out to him again as her grip was ripped away from the leg of the table. Vines were wrapped tightly around both her legs now and Sirius could see that she was struggling not to panic. Both of them knew that would only make it worse.

"If Lumos isn't working, what do I do!?" Sirius asked.

"Do I look like a Herbology Professor?" Alice snapped. "Just do something, Sirius. I don't want to die by being suffocated by an overgrown weed!"

Sirius scowled, sweat forming on his brow. He was starting to feel sick. Whether that was the panic, or the heat of the greenhouse, or both causing that, he didn't really have time to think about it. If Lumos wasn't going to work, then what was?

"What about Incendio?"

"I'm not immortal," Alice responded. "Unless you want to kill me and the plant?"

"Okay, okay," Sirius said, holding his hands up. "Fucking hell, I don't know what to do."

"Figure something out."

Alice was trying her best to stay calm but as more vines appeared from the darkness and wrapped themselves around her limbs. Sirius' hands were shaking. His head was spinning with thoughts he couldn't even reach out and grab one before the idea slipped away. He was seriously starting to panic and Alice was clearly about to lose it too. Her eyes were starting to shine; Sirius could see it in the half-light from his wand.

Maybe that was what caused a plan to form in Sirius' head.

"Alice stay still," Sirius said suddenly.

"I'm trying." Her voice cracked and she took a shaky breath. "Just please, Sirius."

He raised his wand to the vines, took a long deep breath and then cast.

"Diffindo."

The bright yellow of the speel cut through the vines. The stems wrapped around Alice withered and died also instantly and she scrambled to her feet, breathing heavily. Sirius grabbed her arm and pulled her close. They were back to back.

"Incendio?" she asked.

"Incendio," Sirius agreed.

Next thing they knew, they were surrounded by orange flame, fighting back angry vines as they moved towards the greenhouse door. Sirius couldn't help but admire how well they worked now — as a team. They were making progress; that being said, he wasn't sure how they were getting out yet. Alice's back was pressed against his. As they reached the door, she yelled over the roar of flames and cracking of the plant withering.

"Can you hold it off?"

"Of course. Why—?" Sirius began.

"Bombarda!"

The doors slammed open and Sirius felt the winter air rush over them both. Alice grabbed his arm, pulled him out of Greenhouse Four and they slammed the doors behind them. Breathing heavily they sunk down onto the icy ground together. Side by side on the floor, their back pressed against the greenhouse doors, Sirius was coming to the realisation that they'd both almost died. They both exhaled at the same time.

"That was fun," he said weakly.

Alice punched his arm hard, making him pull a face. "That was not fun. On no plain of existence was that fun Sirius Black! We almost died."

"That doesn't make you right," Sirius said simply, "about it not being fun. We were quite the team."

She shook her head, dropping it back against the door. "You, Black, are a literal nightmare."

Sirius lips quirked into a smile and then he sighed as he looked at his watch, realising they were now twenty minutes late for Herbology. He now realised they were supposed to be in Greenhouse Five.

"We better get to class; Sprout's going to kill us."

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 **Comp/Challenge & Prompts: **

**Assignment 10 - Transfiguration, Task 1:** Write about two people being forced to work together.

 **IHC:** 314\. Spell - Bombarda

 **365:** 197\. Plant/Flower - Devil's Snare

 **Gotta catch 'em all:** [Word: Immortal/Dialogue: "That doesn't make you right."/Action: crying/Plant: Devil's Snare]

 **WC - Character Appreciation** \- 22. (genre) friendship

 **WC - Showtime -** 27\. The First Attack - (action) crying

 **WC - Emy's Emporium** \- 13. The Yam (postal system) - write a fic set within 24h

 **Word Count** **:** 863


End file.
